Hold on tight. A lot of folks around these parts were on record against exercise.

"Per Matt Schneidman, the Packers have exercised the fifth-year option on Luka Van Ness."

Wasn't there a song about this guy?

14.5 Million and he has 8.5 Sacks in 3 years. Maybe he can play Nose Tackle.

Do you guys really Love the packers?
Are you really Gute supporters?
Gutemade the right call with Van Ess.

"Given what starting EDGE players are making, the option represents a reasonable investment for a premium position, especially if Van Ness takes the expected step forward."

Well, this will be the 4th year we think "Van Ness takes the expected step forward."

I get it, all we have to do to get him to play better and produce actual first round draft capitol stats is pay him $14 million. Why didn't anyone think of this before. I guess GB wants to reward mediocre play. It also means Parsons is a bargain, using this formula he should be worth $80 million.

We could have signed Clowney, Epenesa, and the Saints Edge rusher for that and probably would have gotten 20 sacks and 80 pressures. This is a bad investment.

Yeah, right: "especially if Van Ness takes the expected step forward..." Like he supposedly will every season? "...Securing impact players at edge just makes sense." There may be many impact edges in the NFL, but none of them are named Van Ness. Easy on the propaganda there, Baghdad Bob!

LVN has produced precious little so far, and it seems like an unreasonably risky bet, a $14.5 million one, that he is suddenly going to be part of a "dominant 1-2 punch". How about maybe producing a 14.5 sack season before shelling out this kind of money, even for one year?

All this is the Packers' last gasp attempt at trying to prove they didn't make a big mistake by drafting him in the first place. Even Quay Walker was more deserving than this guy... This is one of the downsides to leaving the current management structure/personnel in place during the off-season.

"According to multiple reports, the Bengals will decline the fifth-year option on the 2023 first-round pick's deal. Murphy would have been guaranteed $14.475 million in 2027 under the terms of the option.

Murphy compiled 92 tackles, 8.5 sacks and a forced fumble over his first three seasons. He had 5.5 sacks last season and continued progress in the coming season would help his chances of landing that kind of multi-year pact in Cincinnati or somewhere else."

Same draft as LVN, better stats, and they turned down his option.

I see this as good news for a host of reasons. It will finally give Van Ness the playing time he deserves. Secondly, If healthy he will be a key asset to our edge rushers , Also, remember Parsons will miss the beginning of the season and there are no guarantees he returns at 100%. Give credit to Gute for a great draft and, the benefit of the doubt on Van Ness, He knows what he is doing!

Well, funny this article came out after i made an issue about that he wasn't going to get it, a few days ago.
With multiple thumbs down, lol...but, of course 😁
Then damn....the Packers gave it to him!!!

I'll explain why i think they gave it to him, when the new article comes out.
F... it...i'll do it now, and just paste this over.
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The first thing that came to mind, is they gave him the 5th year to buy time to see what he does, and 'possibly' offer him a multi year deal, containing 'low risk' to the team.
Remember, the 5th year is a season away.
There is no hurry.

If they do, then something in the line of Reeds deal, but with less guaranteed, less money up front, and a 1 or 2 year get out of jail free card.

Lets be real..LVN (so far) doesn't have a lot of leverage here.
What is his agent going to point to, his career high 8.5 sacks, 1 FF?

Not exactly one of the WATT Bros. we're talking about here.
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The Packers interest?
Well....Gary's gone, Parsons is coming back from injury, and by all accounts, Parsons loves this guy.

Plus he's got great hair and teeth.
Pantz sent me this sexy picture of him....not sure why though.

It seems funny to me, that a 5th year option would bring outrage over 14 million, taking effect a year from now.

I mean, where was the angst over Gary's deal (besides mine).
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'Packers' Rashan Gary agrees to 4-year, $107.5M extension'

Was i the only one (at the time) saying WTF is happening here?

The 5th highest paid edge rusher in the league, for what?
His 'potential'....again?

He went to Michigan on potential, got drafted 12th, on potential, got a huge 2nd contract....on potential.

Finally...Guter swallows hard, and he gets shipped out.

14 mill for LVN?
do i think he's earned it....omg no, but....
Circumstances i guess.

Or maybe....Guter has a plan.

The guy has two starts. Two!

Better to have bitten the bullet, decline the option & let the Van Ness chips fall where they may than to send good money after bad.

My guess is that the Packers are dedicated to stopping the run foremost. They were steam rolled by Henry last year, as a lot of teams have been, but 216 yds and 4 TDs is embarrassing. The team was middle of the pack in overall run stoppage. The Packers draft picks look to be run stoppers. Cisse, McClellan, DDS, Jackson. Technique questions aside, which come with all rookies and should be worked on, they all look willing to put their body on the line and have higher than average physical attributes to make it happen. LVN is also a run stopper first before pass rush. I have no problem looking to stop the run first, despite some posters that are completely fear based of the big pass play. The Packers have a good safety group, if used correctly, to stop the big play. So let them make teams one dimensional and create more aggressiveness against the pass. Mano y mano. It'd be refreshing to see CBs walk up and challenge at the line. No more softness opinion from the opposing teams.

.

I was certain I’d be in the minority on this. I was one of those who beat the bass drum to draft him, but I’ve been using the snare drum concerning the 5th yr option—just a light drum roll.
Has he been a disappointment—ah—yes.
Is he going to improve……uh-hm…yes!
Go Packers…and Go LVN!!!

So the Packers...
1. ...pay Van Ness one more year at what's becoming the average number for a FA edge, he doesn't produce at a high rate, and he walks
2. ...pay Van Ness for '27, he continues to be average, and the Packers sign him to an appropriate extension (or let him walk)
3. ....pay Van Ness, he balls out, and the Packers sign him to an appropriate extension
3.5. ....pay Van Ness, he balls out and prices himself out of the Packers' budget, and he walks and nets the Packers a good comp pick
4. ....renegotiate an extension prior to '26 or '27 that keeps the full 5th year cap hit off the '27 cap, mitigates his cap hits for the short and protects the Packers longer term in case he's not much more than what we've seen
5. ...trade Van Ness some time prior to the '27 season
6. ...super-secret mystery option that I'm not considering, but would blow your mind.

There's a lot of options here, yet, and that 5th year option hit in '27 is really not all that daunting in terms of AAV for an edge, all things considered.

An average annual value (AAV) of $15.4 million would place an edge rusher in the "Tier 2" or high-end veteran starter category. For context in the 2025–2026 market:

Elite Tier ($25M–$35M+): Occupied by players like Nick Bosa, Myles Garrett, Parsons, and Josh Hines-Allen. These are perennial All-Pros who consistently generate 12+ sacks.

Middle Tier ($14M–$19M): This is where a $15.4M salary sits. Recent comparable contracts in this range include veterans like Alex Highsmith or Uchenna Nwosu. These players are expected to be reliable starters who provide 7–9 sacks and high pressure rates.

To justify a move into that $15M+ salary bracket, an edge rusher typically needs to demonstrate "starter-plus" production. After a developmental (translation: 'wasted') rookie year, Van Ness saw an uptick in his "win rate" (the frequency with which a rusher beats his blocker within 2.5 seconds). In the Packers' 4-3 defensive scheme, he is valued for his "power-to-speed" profile—traits that Brandon Cisse was also praised for during this year's draft process.

$15M Production: Usually requires 35–45 total pressures and roughly 8 sacks per season. LVN has functioned primarily in a heavy rotation. For him to "beat" the value of a $15.4M extension, he must transition from a rotational "energy" rusher to a 60%+ snap-count starter who demands double-teams.

We just played this game with Gary, didn't we? (Keep bangiing head on wall, expect different results)
Gute needs to operate more in the 'real world' and not in his 'fantasy, projection' world, IMHO. Gute's 'sunk cost' is in his 1000% commitment to 'draft and develop'...that if I draft a guy, he will (automatically) develop. This thinking keeps the Pack stalled in mud come playoff time -- they just don't have enough stars or mid-level players to complete b/c of cap money tied up on projections not production.

If the Packers think Van Ness still has potential, and if they see he's putting forth the effort, then this is a good move.
My hunch is that the Luke Ness Monster is going to be a valuable part of a defense that continues to improve into one of the top ten in the NFL.